The present invention is desirably used in minimally invasive procedures such as restorative dentistry and arthroscopy.
As the lifespan of people has increased, so to has the need for permanent dental replacements. Restorative dentistry encompasses efforts to conserve and restore decayed, defective, missing, and traumatically injured teeth, thereby promoting the dental health and achieving the aesthetic desires of the patient.
In the dental field, polymers are recognized as important components of composite restorative materials.
Methods and devices for the delivery and cure of materials within the oral cavity are known. For example U.S. Pat. No. 4,368,040 to Weissman ("Weissman") discloses a preparation of dental prostheses which relies on the use of molds of body parts in order to cast or otherwise form prosthetic replacement parts. U.S. Pat. No. 5,156,777 to Keye ("Keye") discloses the use of three-dimensional data obtained from an organ site to prepare a life-size model of an organ site, which in turn is used to cast a prosthetic implant.
Further, U.S. Pat. No. 5,015,183 to Fenick ("Fenick") discloses a preformed dental stent and a method of use which includes taking a negative impression of a patients tooth which is to be augmented and restored in order to provide a guide for drilling the cavity for a repair. This concept is utilized in a variety of applications to assist with positioning and fixation of dental implant, predominantly into an original tooth, as seen in U.S. Pat. No. 5,133,660 to Fenick, U.S. Pat. No. 5,246,370 to Coatoam, U.S. Pat. No. 5,320,529 to Pompa, U.S. Pat. No. 5,350,297 to Cohen, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,613,852 to Bavitz.
A problem with dental implants is that they are rather invasive and occasionally rejected by the body and expelled from the implantation site, such as the tooth socket (alveolus), referred to hereinafter as the "cavity". Another concern is that current techniques employ repetitive surgery, implantation, healing and correction of the prosthesis. These procedures are typically repeated as may times as necessary to achieve the desired dental prosthesis implantation to the bone, as well as the appropriate stabilization. Consequently, these techniques are typically associated with a great deal of pain and inconvenience to the patient, as well as with the expenditure of excessive efforts and time by the oral surgeon, thereby resulting in higher treatment costs.
Therefore, exists a need for a device, such as a dental prosthetic, and a method for the implantation of the device that not only enhances the opportunity for fixation of the device in the desired location, thereby increasing the functionality of the device, but also eases the pain, discomfort, inconvenience and cost realized by both the patient and the dental surgeon. The present invention is directed towards meeting these and other needs.